Transformers: On Our Own
by Ederek Cole
Summary: Episode 3, part two: Drift begins treating Fifth Wheel just as three new Decepticons appear in the atmosphere. For behind the scenes updates, see my profile.
1. Chapter 1

** Transformers: On Our Own**

** Episode 1**

Optimus Prime shouted out as Megatron shot another hole in the metal that made up Cybertron. If he kept this up, the entire planet would be torn asunder.

Bumblebee and Ironhide rushed forward as Gears, Ratchet, and Jazz opened fire. This wasn't working, and all of them knew it.

U-Turn blasted away, trying desperately to slow Megatron, a feat that he already knew was an impossibility. Only Optimus might've done it, but he was preoccupied; Starscream and Blackout were too strong, and the fact that another group of Decepticons were on their way was something none of them wanted to hear.

Bumblebee called U-Turn out of his thought by shouting, "U-Turn! Help Gears!"

U-Turn looked around. Gears had been cornered by Barricade and Flatline, and was in serious trouble. But out of the corner of his eye, he also saw that Megatron was on a cliff's edge. One well placed shot would push him over the edge.

He almost yelled out for Ironhide, but Blackout had already downed him. Ratchet and Bumblebee were caught up in a deadlock with Jacknife, who had just arrived on the scene, Jazz was trying to get to Gears, but Sideways wouldn't allow it, and Optimus was attempting to provide everyone with even a little bit of help.

"U-Turn, get Gears!" Bumblebee called out again. Just as he got the words out of his mouth, one of Jacknife's shots caught him in the throat, completely destroying his voice processor.

U-Turn looked from Gears to Megatron and back again. Which would be more beneficial, the death of their greatest enemy, or the life of their friend? Ironhide kicked Jacknife out of the way, called out as loud as he could for Ratchet, and took a shot at Barricade; the blast connected, but the Decepticon only staggered, and kept fighting.

Optimus caught U-Turn out of the corner of his eye, and spun around. "U-Turn!" he shouted. "Help Gears! That's an order!"

U-Turn spun around to look at Megatron and aimed his heavy weapon. The Decepticon leader was distracted, so U-Turn fired.

Megatron heard the blast, but didn't know it had been aimed at him. He turned his head just in time to see the shell strike him in the chest and explode, send him rocketing off the cliff. At the same time, however, Flatline grabbed Gears' arm, broke it backwards, and jammed his claw into the back of the Autobot's head. Gears fell, yet another casualty in a war that had no purpose.

Optimus Prime screamed in rage, drawing both swords and jumping across the battlefield to land on Flatline's back. He cut both the Decepticon's arms off and then cut him in half, kicking the scrap metal away.

All the Decepticons ran, knowing that they had no chance without Megatron to preoccupy Optimus Prime. Once all the Decepticons were gone, the Autobots converged around U-Turn, looks of scorn and sorrow in their eyes. Optimus avoided looking at him for a few moments, his eyes locked on the expired body of Gears.

"Did we not tell you to help Gears?" Ironhide growled. "See what happens when you don't follow orders?"

"Even Optimus told you to help him," Jazz scolded. "Did you suddenly decide you were gonna help by letting your comrade die?"

"I just threw Megatron off a cliff!" U-Turn snapped. "Doesn't that count for something?"

Optimus surprised them all; he spun around quicker than any of them and took U-Turn off the ground by his throat.

"For glory?" he shouted. "You let your fellow soldier die for GLORY!?" Prime threw U-Turn across the battlefield. As he skidded across the ground, Ironhide primed his weapon to fire, but Optimus put a hand on his shoulder, then said to U-Turn, "You are exiled from the Autobots. My soldiers listen when I give them an order."

U-Turn wandered Cybertron for days after that, wondering what he had to do to get back in good standing with Optimus Prime. They had been best friends not so long ago, so why had it been so easy for Prime to kick him out of the Autobots? And could you really be removed from one faction or the other? He kicked a rock as he pondered this.

Suddenly, he heard moaning, and some metal rubbing together, then, "Blasted useless parts!"

"Fifth Wheel?" U-Turn wondered aloud. They hadn't seen their old weapons specialist for almost a year, after he had gone insane. How had the old miser gotten out here?

He was about to investigate, but he heard another noise, about 30 meters behind him. He readied his primary canon and spun around. As he thought, it was Decepticons; three scout drones were speeding toward him, but that wasn't the problem.

The problem was what was behind them.

Starscream looked like he was searching for something, but what he was to find on this All-Spark-forsaken rock was unfathomable, and frankly, U-Turn could care less. But he had to get Fifth Wheel out of here or Starscream would rip him apart.

The Autobot turned and ran in the direction of where he thought he had heard the veteran cry out. There was a large rock wall between here and there, but he didn't mind; he jumped, grabbed into the cliff, and pushed himself over it, landing directly beside an old, rusted Autobot that was struggling with some of his armor.

"Yuey?" Fifth Wheel asked as U-Turn got both guns ready to fire. "Glad to see you again, boy. Listen, help me out here, I'm having armor prob-" He broke off as he went into a horrible, metallic-sounding coughing fit.

"Oh, no," U-Turn whispered as he registered the noise as a sure symptom of Torust, a disease that had no cure on Cybertron and had to be treated by an Autobot medic to keep in remission. "And I can't get Ratchet's help..." he muttered as the events of the last few days flashed vividly in his mind.

A revelation occured to him just as Starscream landed at the top of the rock wall behind him. He grabbed Fifth Wheel from behind and launched them both into the atmosphere and beyond.

"Where are we going?" Fifth Wheel demanded.

"Cybertron isn't the only planet inhabited with Autobots," U-Turn explained. "There's one other planet."

"Which is?"

U-Turn looked toward the Milky Way galaxy as he accelerated in its direction.

"Earth."


	2. Chapter 2

**Transformers: On Our Own**

** Episode 2**

The crowd rose out of their se as car 77 flew around the last turn. It seemed that, once again, Tony de Blanche would win the Daytona 500.

Tony couldn't hear the screams, however, over the roar of his car's engine. He checked his gauges. Everything was good.

"Looks like another win, boys," he said to his pit crew through the radio. He heard their cheerful cry as he muted his end of the mic and addressed the car itself. "Everything good in there, Drift?"

The Autobot responded in his naturally calm, slightly British accent. "You're back left tire's been a bit low for a few minutes, but it's nothing I can't help." Drift was silent for a short moment, then said, "Fixed."

"Thanks, Drift," Tony said. He wasn't sure when he had become accustomed to having a talking car from outer space, but he had, and he had been thankful for it ever since his crash in Tullahoma, something he wouldn't have walked away from had Drift not been his car.

Tony de Blanche was quickly closing the distance between him and the finish line, and the crowd grew ever louder. Tony smiled. 'Cup number two,' he thought to himself.

Suddenly, Drift spoke up again. "We've got a problem."

Tony glanced nervously at the dashboard. "What's wrong?"

"We need to finish quickly, and we can't stay for the champagne. I'm detecting two unidentified extraterrestrial object inbound at 30,000 nauts. Only something of my race could hit that velocity in Earth's atmosphere and not disintegrate, and no other Autobots are cleared to land."

"What's that mean?"

"It means the bad guys are, more than likely, landing just south of Daytona."

* * *

U-Turn kept his sensors trained on Fifth Wheel as they entered the atmosphere of the alien planet. Reentry was rough, even for a healthy Autobot; Fifth Wheel had a potentially fatal disease, and they were being pursued by Starscream.

U-Turn checked his maps, marking where they were going to land and transmitting it to Fifth Wheel. The old weapon's specialist curled up, as was procedure, and coated himself in a hologram of an asteroid. U-Turn did the same, still not sure about how wise this decision had been.

* * *

Tony won, as had been anticipated, then had to apologize to his crew chief for not going to the victory circle after such an important achievement. Drift drove, leaving Tony with the awkward feeling of being in someone else's seat.

"So where exactly are we going?" Tony asked, hoping to strike up conversation to break the silence.

"Exactly 4.32 miles south-southwest of Daytona," Drift responded, an odd business tone in his voice. "That's where the objects are headed. We have to get there first, just in case." Then he started talking to someone that Tony didn't recognize, someone whose voice was coming through on the radio. "Optimus, have you cleared any Autobots for entry into Earth's atmosphere?"

"I sent Bumblebee, but he just left Cybertron. He won't be there for at least one Earth week. Drift, investigate, but do not engage unless you are sure what faction these rogues are part of. Report back to me with their names."

"Affirmative," Drift responded. Then he said to Tony, "If things get hairy, run. Don't stand around waiting for the fight to be over, because if it's two Decepticons, they'll rip you to shreds."

"Got it," Tony agreed. He wasn't one to run from a fight, but he figured when a twenty-foot-tall talking robot from outer space told you to run away, it was probably a good idea to listen.

* * *

Jackson Rose put his motorcycle helmet on and walked out of the Seven Eleven, expecting to see his brand new electric green 2010 Kawasaki Ninja awaiting him in the parking lot. Instead, he watched it drive itself down the road going above top speed, his eyes wide and his mouth open.

Shinobi was, quite frankly, glad to be free of Jackson Rose. He was not a very nice person, and Shinobi liked nice people. But that wasn't his reason for abandoning him. No, his reason was that he had picked up two unidentified objects, inbound to the north at several thousand miles per hour, and THEN picked up an Autobot distress signal 2.68 seconds later. These falling objects were Autobots, and one or both of them were in trouble.


	3. Chapter 3

**Transformers: On Our Own**

** Episode 3, Part One**

Drift skidded to a halt as the two meteorites crashed into the ground and slid almost a hundred yards. Tony climbed out of the orange-and-white race car stared in awe.

"Sweet mother of God," he whispered unbelievingly. "What are those?"

The car's body shifted and rose up on its tires. The front end split down the middle and folded down over the bottom of the vehicle as the back end broke apart and both parts extended and changed shape, to resemble feet. Drift's head formed from the engine and settled between the front wheel wells, which had become the Autobot's shoulders. Drift cracked his neck and observed the scene.

"That's how we land on alien planets," Drift explained. We have to disguise ourselves or we draw attention to wherever we land."

"And this doesn't draw attention?" Tony asked incredulously. "I find that hard to believe."

Drift was about to respond, but a flash of green caught his eye, and his arm transformed into a canon, now trained on the newcomer: a brand new, electric green motorcycle. The bike zoomed toward them, hit a small hill of dirt, and jumped it. In midair, the bike fractured in four places, twisted apart, and landed, sliding across the ground to stop about ten yards in front of Drift. The strange robot clenched his fist, and katana-like blade almost twice the length of Tony shot out of the back of its wrist.

"Name, or I'll cut you to pieces," Shinobi warned.

"Drift," Tony's car replied calmly, "senior medical advisor and direct line between Earth and Cybertron for Optimus Prime."

Shinobi relaxed and retracted his blade. "My name is Shinobi. I'm a stealth operative for Optimus."

Drift cocked his head. "He never told me about a stealth operative on Earth."

"That's because it was between me and him. Ask him about it if you must, but if you're an Autobot, too, then you must've gotten the distress signal one of these Autobots sent out."

Tony was only half-listening to their conversation. He was more interested in the third meteorite that was rocketing over their heads. Drift and Shinobi also looked up.

"It has to be a Decepticon," Shinobi deduced. "That's the only reason the distress signal might've been disrupted to you."

Drift rounded on Shinobi. "And why didn't it affect you?"

"Because Optimus equipped me to be able to deflect any hostile signals in the presence of an allied frequency." Shinobi put his hand to the side of his head. "Optimus, we've got two Autobots and a Decepticon that just arrived. Identities and conditions unknown."

"I didn't clear and Autobots to land on Earth," Tony heard Optimus say. "Unless..."

Drift's eyes narrowed. "Unless what?"

"Unless it's U-Turn."

Shinobi's shoulders sank. "U-Turn?"

Drift groaned. "Why is he here?"

"It must be the other Autobot, the one he has with him," Optimus mused. "Do not open fire, but be aware that U-Turn was expelled from the Autobots. He shouldn't be there."

"Got it," Shinobi said. He drew his sword again, which extracted a sharp inhale from Drift.

"He said don't attack--" Drift began, but Shinobi interrupted.

"Don't attack them," he said, pointing at the two meteorites. "What about him?"

At exactly that time, Starscream could be seen rising quickly into the air. As he ascended, his shape changed, and he became an F-15 fighter jet and began to circle them.

Drift aimed his canon, but Shinobi motioned for him to hold. When Drift looked at him sideways, Shinobi said simply, "I got him."

Starscream dove, and opened fire. Drift went down on one knee and blocked Tony, who hit the ground. Shinobi jumped up on Drift's back and kicked off, grabbing onto Starscream's wing with one hand. Starscream barrel-rolled, and Shinobi slammed his blade through the wing he had a hold of. He used the momentum from the Decepticon's maneuver and swung around and over his wing, slicing it clean off. As a result, however, Shinobi had no handhold, and he plummeted to Earth. Just as he though he was going to hit the ground, a large, robotic hand grabbed his leg.

"Fifth Wheel?" Drift remarked, disbelievingly.

"Who else?" the old Autobot laughed, dropping Drift on the ground.


	4. Chapter 3, part 2

** Transformers: On Our Own**

** Episode 3, Part 2**

U-Turn stood up and faced the group. Shinobi tried to keep his eyes off him; he knew that U-Turn knew no one liked his company. U-Turn was a bit controlling, and tried to give out orders whenever Optimus wasn't around.

Fifth Wheel turned to Drift. "So where can I get some new armor?" he said gruffly. Drift seemed about to answer when the veteran got distracted by an old, beat up white Chevy van. He scanned it, and developed the parts needed to replicate it as he transformed to match its shape. U-Turn shook his head at his old mentor's lacking attention span, then walked over the hill just behind Drift. Down at the bottom was a jade-green 1974 Chevy Impala, which he scanned and copied. Both of the new Autobots transformed back, but the moment Fifth Wheel was in robot form again, he broke down into a horrible coughing fit which forced him down on one knee.

Drift rushed forward and knelt down beside him. Shinobi rounded on U-Turn and asked, "What happened to him?"

U-Turn leaned down on the other side of Fifth Wheel and said solemnly, "He has Torust. We need a medic, that's why we came down here."

Drift looked at him sideways. "And why didn't you clear this with Optimus?"

U-Turn looked away. "We're not exactly on speaking terms right now."

"Yeah, that's about right," Shinobi scoffed. At U-Turn's malevolent glare, he crossed his arms. "You got kicked out of the Autobots. Exactly what do you have to do to accomplish that?"

U-Turn almost retorted, then decided against it and took to staring at the ground. Drift glared at him for a moment, then shook his head and said to the group, "We need to get the help of a second medic; I can only do so much."

"But there are no other Autobots on Earth," Shinobi observed. "You'll have to do with what we have."

"Umm..." Tony started, drawing the attention of all of them. "I'm not any kind of alien medic, but I'm a pretty good mechanic."

* * *

Fifth Wheel jumped as Tony touched the red and blue wire to his chest. "Watch it, fleshy," the Autobot growled. Tony shrugged.

"He told me to," he said, gesturing to Drift, who was in his vehicle form. "He said something about the disease only being able to exist below a certain voltage."

"That's not what I said," sounded Drift's voice from the 77 car. "I said that Torust can only damage our main circuits if there is no electricity flowing through them. Our bodies use Energon, the life blood of our planet. Energon reacts negatively with electricity, and in such a hostile environment, Torust cannot exist."

"So it's basically an electric chair for the disease?" Tony asked.

"Yes, basically."

Shinobi lifted the door of the garage and said, "However you're treating that virus, do it quick."

"Why?" Drift inquired, transforming back to robot form and ducking so as not to hit the ceiling. "What's wrong?"

"We've got three incoming meteorites, and they don't look friendly."

* * *

Speedtrap, Trainwrecker, and Shred hurdled toward the Earth at well over a thousand miles per hour. Speedtrap, the leader of the Decepticon trio, opened his direct channel to his master and said, "Lord Megatron, we are inbound towards the surface of the planet. The Autobot general will not escape us this time."

"Excellent," Megatron responded. "Destroy all who stand between you and the Autobot known as--" Radio interference broke the contact between the Decepticons, but Speedtrap didn't give it too much thought; he knew who they were after.


End file.
